In a courtroom drama worthy of its own reel, the Kerala High Court today tore into the Central Board of Film Certification for its baffling directive to strip “Janaki” from the title and dialogue of the upcoming Suresh Gopi starrer JSK – Janaki vs State of Kerala. Justice N. Nagaresh, presiding over the petition brought by the film’s producers, bristled at the board’s claim that naming a rape-survivor character “Janaki” somehow offended religious sentiment.
“Seeta Aur Geeta” and “Ram Lakhan” have graced cinema screens for decades without stirring controversy, the bench observed, “Yet here we are, quibbling over Janaki—a heroine fighting for justice.” The court’s comparison of those beloved titles laid bare what it called an inconsistent and arbitrary exercise of censorship power. Pointing to the Revising Committee’s show-cause notice, Justice Nagaresh demanded the CBFC’s written rationale—and fast—ordering the board to file the chairman’s decision by next Monday.
With its June 27 global premiere abruptly put on ice, Janaki vs State of Kerala—a taut legal thriller featuring Union Minister-actor Suresh Gopi—remains caught in a bureaucratic storm. As the HC readies its next hearing, filmmakers and cinephiles alike are left wondering how a name as commonplace as Janaki could suddenly become too sacred for art.
